Jul 28, 2026 - Business

Ares reportedly in takeover talks with Leonard Green

Dan Primack

Illustration of a piggy bank and DNA surrounded by abstract shapes and money. — Illustration: Axios Visuals

Ares Management has held talks to acquire Los Angeles-based buyout shop Leonard Green & Partners, per the Financial Times.

Why it matters: Private equity is an AUM weak spot for Ares, when compared to other listed alt asset firms. Adding Leonard Green would help it fill the hole.

By the numbers: Ares reports that over 65% of its $644 billion in AUM is in private credit, while another 22% is in real assets. Only 4% is in private equity.

Leonard Green, which was founded in 1989, has over $85 billion in AUM and currently is raising a 10th flagship fund that's expected to be sized around the $15.2 billion it raised for Fund IX in 2022.

The bottom line: "Every public firm is looking at areas where they don't have strengths ... The current zeitgeist is bigger is better." — Antoine Gara, FT

Add Axios on Google

Ares reportedly in takeover talks with Leonard Green

What to read next